Medical Ethics Webinar Series
Wednesday 5 November 2025, 6.30pm AEDT | Online
Join us for the next session in the MOGA Medical Ethics Webinar Series:
“Hope, Truth-Telling and Navigating Dilemmas When These (Seem to) Contradict Each Other in the Everyday Practice of Oncology.”
“To live without hope is to cease to live.”
— Fyodor Dostoevsky
In oncology, maintaining hope while conveying difficult truths can present significant ethical and practical challenges. This session will explore key questions such as:
What does it mean to facilitate hope for patients with advanced, incurable cancer?
When, and how, should clinicians clarify or challenge unrealistic hope?
How should oncologists respond to requests to withhold information to preserve hope?
This webinar offers a valuable opportunity to reflect on these ethical tensions and consider thoughtful approaches to navigating them in clinical practice.
MOGA Medical Ethics Committee
Ethical issues impact on all areas of our professional activities from dealings with industry, day to day patient care through to personal, professional views on complex issues such as voluntary assisted dying. The aim of this Sub-Committee is to improve outcomes for patients and clinicians through the application of ethical principles to oncology issues affecting clinical practice, research and education
> Members
Dr Tam Bui (Chair)
Prof Clare Delaney
Dr Ehsan Shamsi Gooshki
Dr Bridget Haire
Dr Sarah Heynemann (Deputy Chair)
Prof Michael Millward
Dr Sharon Nahm
Session Outline*
The session will begin with a presentation by Prof Justin Oakley, followed by a response from Dr Linda Sheahan. This will lead into an interactive panel discussion featuring A/Prof Abhijit Pal and A/Prof Zarnie Lwin
The panel discussion will draw on insights from several published exemplar cases, including:
Francis (Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2008; 26(36):6001–6002)
Clarke and Oakley (The Journal of Medicine & Philosophy, 2025; 50(1):13–24)
Johnston et al. (Clinical Ethics, 2016; 11(1):38–41)
These cases will serve as the basis for exploring the complex ethical issues related to hope, truth-telling, and communication in oncology practice.
You can submit your questions anonymously during the webinar, ensuring a comfortable and open discussion.
*Please note, this webinar will be recorded for educational purposes. The recording will be made available exclusively to MOGA members via MOGA communication channels. By attending, you consent to the recording.
Target Audience
Medical oncologists, early career Young Oncologists and Advanced Trainees. Registration is open to MOGA members and non-members.
CPD points
This webinar meets the new RACP requirement for CPD activities in ethics and professional behaviour.
Participants can scan the QR code after the session to log this activity.
Host
Prof Justin Oakley, Monash Bioethics Centre, Monash University
Prof Justin Oakley is Deputy Director of the Monash Bioethics Centre and Director of the Master of Bioethics at Monash University. He has published widely on virtue ethics and professional roles, informed consent, and clinician accountability. He leads ethics curriculum development in the Monash MD program and is currently completing a book on virtue ethics in policy and professional practice.
Presenters
Dr Sarah Heynemann, MOGA Medical Ethics Committee Deputy Chair
Dr Sarah Heynemann is an early-career medical oncologist based in Melbourne, and PhD candidate with Sydney Health Ethics, The University of Sydney. Her PhD research is focusing on exploration of issues at the interface of bioethics, oncology and novel clinical trials methodology; and she is supported by the NHMRC scholarship scheme. She is involved in teaching, as a teaching associate within the medical curriculum for Monash Bioethics, and as a subject tutor for the Master of Cancer Sciences, The University of Melbourne. She is an Associate Editor (Research Ethics) for the Journal of Bioethical Inquiry, and deputy chair of the MOGA ethics sub-committee.
A/Prof Zarnie Lwin OAM, Medical Oncologist
A/Prof Zarnie Lwin (MBBS, FCP, FRACP) is a senior clinician at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital and the University of Queensland, specialising in Neuro-oncology. She trained in Burma, South Africa, and Australia, and completed a research fellowship at Princess Margaret Hospital, Canada.
Her research focuses on neuro-oncology, health services, equity, and thoracic oncology. She holds leadership roles in international neuro-oncology societies and is a Clinical Fellow at QIMR Berghofer. A/Prof Lwin has led multiple clinical trials and received awards for her work in societal and health services research.
Dr Linda Sheahan, Palliative Care Physician
Dr Linda Sheahan is a Clinical Ethics Consultant and Lead of the South Eastern Sydney Local Health District (SESLHD) Clinical Ethics Service. She is also a Staff Specialist in Palliative Medicine at St George Hospital, and SESLHD Clinical Stream Director, End of Life and Palliative Care. Dr Sheahan holds honorary positions with: Sydney Health Ethics, University of Sydney; UNSW School of Public Health and Community Medicine; and Joint Centre for Bioethics, University of Toronto, Canada.
A/Prof Abhijit Pal, Medical Oncologist
A/Prof Abhijit Pal is a medical oncologist at Liverpool and Bankstown Hospitals, specialising in lung cancer and thoracic malignancies. He completed a Phase 1 trials fellowship at the Royal Marsden Hospital, London, and earned a PhD on informed consent and equity in cancer research. He has published 35 peer-reviewed papers, contributes to over $6 million in research funding, and holds leadership roles in clinical training and research.
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